Take away the hype in practically anything the government puts across for public consumption and what emerges is generally a situation that is different to that projected.

So much has been said about the progress made in the running of Mater Dei Hospital since Labour took over in 2013 that many may easily get the impression that all is fine.

Well, in at least one key area of its operations – outpatient clinics – reality shows a different picture,as a National Audit Office reporthas confirmed.

Contrary to claims by Labour politicians that the waiting list has been slashed, the truth is that it has not, and unless and until inbuilt problems preventing a greater turnover of patients are tackled head-on, it will not be cut to a degree that may be reasonably considered acceptable.  Not a moment too soon, a team has now been created with a mandate and authority to identify and take corrective action.  But, since the problem has been known to exist for years, what has been holding the hospital management from tackling the issues involved?

The solutions are so patently obvious that the public can hardly be blamed if it considers the latest move as simply a ruse to calm nerves.

The audit office has found that the average patient waits more than eight months for a first outpatient appointment, double that in the UK and seven weeks longer than Irish patients endure.

Government apologists may well argue that patients in some other countries may have to wait far longer, but this is no valid argument for a situation that can be considerably improved if all the stakeholders show genuine willingness to find a long-lasting solution.

The government has in mind building a new outpatient block but, as the audit office points out, this will not solve the problem.

Weighing in, the doctors’ union agrees, arguing the funds should be used to recruit new consultants. Although a new outpatient block would give the general hospital much needed additional space, the union’s argument makes sense as well.

Although significant strides have admittedly been made in the volume of surgical operations done and, also, in the provision of outpatient services, the department is held back by various factors, which, the audit office says, are in many cases out of the hospital’s direct control.

A major problem is the lack of available consultants in the afternoons and over weekends.

It would seem that, for obvious reasons, most consultants would prefer keeping their private practice than extending their time of duty at outpatient clinics. Also, many of the patients reporting at the hospital’s outpatient clinics can easily be seen at health centres.

The figure is anything at between 20 per cent and 50 per cent of the annual 500,000 outpatient visits.

Yet another reason ­– and this is the most frustrating – is fast-tracking. This is understandable in urgent cases, but not when referrals by private consultants and politicians jump the queue.

This is a Times of Malta print editorial